Aspen Leading Edge

Katerina Lewinbuk, South Texas College of Law Houston, talks about the third edition of her course book, Connecting Ethics & Practice: A Lawyers Guide to Professional Responsibility. She also shares how she teaches her course Mindful Lawyering and the importance of teaching mindfulness to future lawyers.   

Alyssa DiRusso, Samford University, and Stephanie Willbanks, Vermont School of Law, discuss the upcoming fifth edition of their book, Federal Taxation of Wealth Transfers: Cases and Problems. They also share their thoughts on the future of taxation and the removal of wills and trusts from the bar exam. 

John Browning, attorney, and Chair of the Texas Taskforce for the Responsible AI in the Law, talks about the evolution of digital evidence starting from social media to today’s generative AI. He also provides advice for lawyers and law students to enhance and protect their social media presence.

Amy Vaughan-Thomas, Director of Academic Success at UMass Law, shares resources and advice for first-generation and first-year law students. She also talks about the internal and external pressures of being a law student and how that affects their work.

Kyle McEntee talks about starting Law School Transparency and the importance of engaging with students before they begin law school. He shares details about the Law School Admissions Council and LawHub as additional resources for upcoming students.

Justice Brian Hoffstadt and Professor Laurie Levenson, Loyola Law School, discuss the new scenarios included in their casebook, Evidence Law: Practice, Problems, and Policy. They also share advice on teaching Evidence and what changes have been made in this field of law. Justice Hoffstadt also talks about how technology has impacted evidence law and how authenticity has a different approach.  

Patricia Baia, Touro Law School, shares the details of being an Instructional Designer and how designing courses has changed over the years. She also gives advice on how to mix up lessons and how to conduct self-reflection after every class.

Marc Miller, University of Arizona, Chris Robertson, Boston University, and Joe Terry, Vice President and Publisher at Aspen Publishing discuss the journey of creating JD-Next and the importance of law schools accepting this as an accurate formative assessment. They also share current statistics on how the program boosts law school performance.

Michele Pistone, Villanova University, talks about founding and directing VIISTA (Villanova Interdisciplinary Immigration Studies Training for Advocates). She describes the three different modules in detail and what each certificate represents.

Elena Langan, Dean and Professor of Law at Touro Law School, describes the FlexTime JD Program which gives students the opportunity to attend a flexible part-time law program. She shares insights from the first graduating class and what is ahead for the program, including a Manhattan campus next Fall. Elena also gives examples of interdisciplinary opportunities the students are given and the value they provide.